Benjamin Netanyahu’s trouble sure does sound like a chapter form Donald Trump’s current book of ‘How I bob and weave to try to keep my job and NOT get indicted’….
Netanyahu’s battle for survival has many similarities to Donald Trump’soutrage-fueled fight against special counsel Robert Mueller’s Russia investigation:
- While Trump has Mueller, Netanyahu’s nemesis over the last two years was Israeli chief of police Roni Alsheikh. Alsheikh is a former deputy director of the Shin Bet security agency and was picked for the top police job by Netanyahu who, according to his associates, believed Alsheikh would be easier to control. In fact, Alsheikh aggressively pursued the allegations against Netanyahu.
- Like Trump, Netanyahu has accused the police and media of carrying out a “witch hunt” against him. He has aggressively attacked the press and denounced leaks and came up with a slogan to rouse supporters at political rallies and on Twitter: “There will be nothing because there is nothing.” Trump has used similar language.
- Like Trump, Netanyahu is counting on his attorney general. He appointed Avichai Mandelblit, a former member of his Cabinet, to the post in 2016. Mandelblit’s critics claim he’s going soft on Netanyahu and dragging his feet on the corruption cases.
What’s next: There had been speculation Netanyahu would try to cut a deal with the attorney general: resignation from the prime minister’s job in return for the closing of his three legal cases. But a speech last night in which Netanyahu harshly attacked the police indicates he’s not going down that road….
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the heads of the other coalition parties decided this morning to dissolve the Knesset and hold early elections on April 9th, 2019. The elections were supposed to be in November 2019.
Why it matters: This high-stakes political drama is connected to the attorney general’s upcoming decision whether to indict Netanyahu on three separate cases of bribery. Last week, the state prosecutor said a decision on the Netanyahu cases will be made in the next several months. The decision to go for early elections might influence his timetable.
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Just a month ago, after the resignation of Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman, Netanyahu fought hard to keep his coalition together, warning in a press conference that the Israeli security situation was very unstable and early elections would be dangerous. Today, Netanyahu tossed aside this talking point and announced early elections….
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